For other guesses, see the main WMG index.
1.The Light is a shadowy government conspiracy to control superhumans like an extreme version of the suicide squad.
2. The light members are from earth three and they came to Earth 16 after they were nearly defeated on earth 3 and are trying to make Earth 16 into a paradise to atone for their failure on Earth three and are fighting the justice league to get revenge by proxy.
3. The spectre created the light to bring paradise to earth after he saw what happened to the Earth after superheroes disappeared for many years and he created the light before the league existed. Also he realizes that it he makes earth a paradise superheroes would have no need to exist and he uses villains because they're willing to get their hands dirty unlike superheroes. The main reason Jim is doing this so that the spectre would no longer have a need to exist.
These ideas are all jossed by now but they could've been great alternatives for the light's motivations and existence.
This explains why they are working with a higher-than-normal amount of cohesion for a bunch of backstabbing egomaniacal supervillains, many with contradictary goals, and why they are less obsessed than they usually are with their enemies (eg. Lex Luthor seems much more sane and balanced and not constantly scheming to murder a superhero out of petty jealousy). Assuming it is Darkseid who is backing them, he probably did this so he could take control of the planet more easily by having natives do it for him in advance; they are all (or mostly) under some form of Mind Control that believe that they are ushering in a better world, but aren't thinking clearly enough to realize that Darkseid is the absolute last guy to bring that about.
- Knowing the Light, they're probably just allying to get Darkseid's help, and may even lead him into a trap so the world doesn't have to worry about his "utopia." Darkseid probably knows this, and pulling them into his trap.
- They used mind control technology themselves, and the partnership with Darkseid is mutual, which is what allowed Granny Goodness to join them in season 3.
Also halfway or further through the second season, after invasion is dealt with, they'll do their Heel–Face Turn and now the real invasion begins: the Light's plan to conquer the world after Earth is exhausted by an alien invasion. Not that they would have that much of fight from a good portion of the populace. After all, they'd look pretty good at this point if they helped to save the planet.
- Initially it's jossed and it's a Big Bad Duumvirate, but they do later turn against them and help the Justice League.
- Following "Usual Suspects" it appears that the Light has taken over the Justice League. Now that they have control, they will start turning on each other.
- Luthor, Savage, Bee, the Brain and Ocean Master will fight over power by trying to off each other. Ra's al Ghul will attempt something extreme to "cleanse" the world contrary to the others' wishes and Klarion will simply be disappointed in the lack of Chaos and go rogue (or even help the team) just to keep the fighting going.
- Jossed with the Justice League being freed, some members are captured later or willingly leave in later seasons, the closest to a betrayal came with Granny.
- Revenge indeed, but on the heroes' loved ones in season 3, and yes, fail miserably thanks to Lady Shiva's sword. The Light had another way to give him a second chance in season 4.
- They end up accomplishing this with a team up with the Justice League, as the Justice League damages their partnership enough for the Reach to go all out.
I am talking, of course, about The Black Glove!
- Luthor and Vandal Savage are the most loyal to each other. Luthor is probably even more devoted to the Light's message, considering its been his motive in comics for almost thirty years, unlike Vandal Savage's New Earth counterpart.
- Ra's Al Ghul is more interested in a habitable, safe world instead of humanity's superiority. He's joined The Light for the "better world" aspect, and doesn't care at all about humans being superior. He'll betray them if and when humanity's superiority threatens the environment, which is ironically the same rationale behind being a part of the Light(humans being safe and secure means no alien invasion every Tuesday.
- Queen Bee just wants to keep her power base of Bialya, and prevent it falling apart. If the Light decides to no longer protect Bialya, she'll betray them (not because Even Evil Has Standards, but because she needs her country to be effective.)
- Being an assassin, Black Manta is partially in it because it pays well and partially because it gives him a certain Karma Houdini status-if he's in a tough spot, the Light will bail him out.
- As with his comic book counterpart, the Brain has no delusions of humanity's champion and no desire of a perfect world-he just wants to Take Over the World, pure and simple. The Light are rather successful in their goal, so allying with them makes his rise to power easier. The Brain is waiting for his chance to usurp them
- Klarion is just in it for laughs. He'll probably manipulate the Light into holding the Idiot Ball to cause chaos, or feed on the chaos that a war between humans and aliens would cause.
- Count Vertigo: pretty much confirmed that he led the IJL in exchange for a favor from Vandal Savage (and we see the payoff in "Coldhearted".
- Joker: Does the guy need a reason to cause general mayhem? Lex probably let him in on it, knowing the clown would be offended if he wasn't invited.
- Poison Ivy: Could probably be hooked on the Light's whole "better world" shtick if they kept mum on the specifics.
- Ultra-Humanite: It's confirmed that she (yes, she) has some connection to the Brain in her past life. Maybe he could have coerced her.
- Black Adam: A tough one, but perhaps the Light offered him control of Kahndaq after they rule the world. In fact, Queen Bee is probably in a better position than most to ensure that happens.
- Wotan: Klarion seems to control him, judging by "Misplaced", so he could have simply ordered him, being a Lord of Chaos and all.
- Lex is confirmed in season 1, while Brainiac only shows up as the neutral "Collector of Worlds" in the tie in comics.
- No doubt one of the members is Vandal Savage. Miguel Ferrer was one of the voices of the Light and he was rumored to be the voice of Vandal Savage for the series ages ago.
- Vandal is confirmed and the main founder of the bunch.
- Darkseid's almost certainly not a member himself, what will a cosmic empire to run and all that, but if they plan to bring in the New Gods mythos at all, it wouldn't be surprising if he had an agent among them, to see if they could become useful to him (and just for the irony factor).
- One of the members almost has a similar silhouette.
- One of Darkseid's lackeys doesn't join for a while, until season 3 when Granny Goodness is added to the group.
- The Bat-rogues should probably be represented as well- it doesn't seem like Joker's, Two-Face's, or for that matter most of their kind of deal at all, but Ra's al Ghul might just have his hands in it, particularly if they are at least partially Well Intentioned Extremists. If both he and Savage are on the team, I would expect Ra's to draw more heavily on his The Dark Knight Trilogy incarnation, simply to avoid having him and Savage be too similar.
- According to The Other Wiki, the League of Shadows is set to put in an appearance in Artemis's intro episode. Whether he's Light-affiliated or not, this would seem to make the odds of Ra's putting in an appearance pretty good.
- Well Intentioned Extremists sounds likely, judging from them creating Superboy in case Superman "turns from the light" (unless you prescribe to the theory that Superman is The Mole, and by this they simply mean turning from their organisation).
- Ra's is confirmed as a member in season 1.
- Alternately, they could go for someone a bit more unexpected among the Bat-Rogues and put Riddler in the Light- I can see being part of a clandestine team of Chessmasters appealing to him (though his particular quirks might also lead to his being the one to ultimately spill the beans on their existence, so he might not be the smartest choice from the others' standpoint, unless he brought something really special to the table...)
- Like maybe, the identity of Batman? That could work if he's all smug about it and doesn't say because "The greatest riddle isn't a good riddle if everyone knows the answer" since he could just as easily be bluffing. It's also possible the members of the Light don't know who each other is...
- Ultimately jossed, as Riddler was only ever a lackey who escaped Belle Reve, helped recover the Starro arm, and fight the Team in the mission that happened to get the Starro-tech to them.
- Black Manta could easily be on as well, considering he's Aqualad's father.
- Episode 8 confirms he works with the Light. It's unknown if he's a member though
- It's pretty clear that he's just a mercenary hired by them who has no real loyalty to them beyond the job they're paying him to do.
- As of Season 2, confirmed. He's taken Ocean Master's position.
- Episode 8 confirms he works with the Light. It's unknown if he's a member though
- They might even have a mole on the League itself. The relationship of the teen heroes to their mentor organization will be central to the show. Add the Rule of Drama and...
- Maxwell Lord.
- Deathstroke seems rather likely, given his love of general manipulation. Also, Grodd. Again, he's one of the foremost Manipulative Bastards in the DCU, so this seems to be right up his ally. Unless he chooses to fuck them over, of course; knowing Grodd, that's not an off guess.
- To the former: although he's not a Director member, he replaces Sportsmaster as the Light's enforcer. To the latter: Jossed. In the comics, he's just one of their test subjects.
- Deathstroke finally gets promoted to replace Ra's in season 3.
- Another option: before he became "Dr. Rape", Doctor Light was notable as a nemesis of teen superheroes in general. Maybe the writers plan to rescue him from his Never Live It Down status as the Big Bad behind this suspiciously-named conspiracy.
- In the wide-angle shot of The Light near the end, the second silhouette from left seems to have a familiar piece of headgear...
- One can hardly forget "the sorcerer Wodan," (or however it's spelled - there seems to be no canonical DC entity with a similar name, though the League all act like they know of the guy) who just happens to attempt blotting out the sun just when Cadmus' fire becomes known. Is this a new, unique villain serving The Light, or did Zatara make it up to hide his masters' secrets?
- Most likely Zatara was referring to Wotan, Doctor Fate's arch-nemesis, whose name has sometimes been rendered as Wodan. He'd definitely be a villain requiring major hero power to take down.
- Wotan is present as an Injustice League member, but never joins the Light.
- Or maybe The Light is actually lead by a Japanese super-criminal with the power to control and kill any non-powered person in the world, assisted by a Flying Brick with phasing powers and a weakness for apples.
- The scientist at the end of episode 3 will turn out to be T.O. Morrow, Red Tornado's creator. Since he's an Evil Genius, he may be part of The Light.
- ... Yes, he is. He looked and acted exactly like Morrow, and Wikipedia rightly refers to him as such.
- "Drop Zone" confirms that Morrow was working for the Light, but doesn't say whether or not he's an actual member.
- Given the ostensible motives of The Light, Ra's al-Ghul is definitely not an off possibility as far as membership goes.
- Confirmed in "Targets"
- In the end of the third episode, one member of the Light speaks in a French accent, and his silhouette is cylindrical with no visible head or neck, much like the Brain, leader of the Brotherhood of Evil.
- Then again, the Brain isn't the only French villain with a dome-head. It could be that this villain is Emil La-Salle, better known as the teleporter, "Warp."
- Confirmed to be Brain in season 1.
- Its possible that, due to the secretive nature of "The Light," that Libra is the head of this group, like he was with the recent incarnation of the Secret Society of Super-Villains in the comics.
- Which also fit with the Agent of Darkseid theory above, since in Final Crisis it's revealed Libra's one of the New Gods of Apokolips.
- Two villains who can be ruled out as of "Drop Zone" are Bane and Kobra- Bane is shown to oppose the Light's interests, while Kobra is an ally of the group, but the way he talks about them and the fact that he uses Sportsmaster as a go-between pretty solidly establish he's not part of the group himself.
- Amanda Waller. She's definitely manipulative enough and she's a Well-Intentioned Extremist. Plus, she has a long history of working with highly secretive organizations.
- Jossed in "Terrors".
- Parallax could be the leader of "The Light".
- The Great White Shark, who works with the rest of The Light entirely out of Arkham Asylum.
- Ocean Master.
- Judging from the line-up below, the only thing they're missing is a magic specialist. I'm guessing either Circe or Felix Faust.
- Word of God just confirmed that the Light has seven members. My current theories for Light members who've spoken so far and why:
- L-1- Vandal Savage (This is Miguel Ferrier, rumored to be voicing Savage; Savage's appearance confirmed via action figure, and he's certainly Big Bad material)
- L-2- Ra's al Ghul (Confirmed in "Targets")
- L-3- Lex Luthor (Confirmed in "Targets")
- L-4- Confirmed to be Queen Bee (voiced by Marina Sirtis, who already talked about her role as Queen Bee).
- L-5- Ocean Master (Has the same voice actor as Orm, introduced in an Atlantis-centered episode)
- L-6- The Brain (Rounded silhouette and French accent. When the brain appears he seems to have the exact same voice)
- Possibly Confirmed in "Alpha Male".
- L-7- Hasn't spoken yet
- This entire line-up was confirmed in "Revelations". L-7 was revealed as Klarion of all people.
- As of Season 2, Black Manta has taken Ocean Master's place for unknown reasons.
- Season 3 turns over the Light to replace Ra's with Deathstroke, Brain with Ultra-Humanite, and Manta with Granny. Upon betraying the Light, she is then replaced in turn by Ambassador Zviad Baazovi.
- They represent his Gambit against heroes going rogue, and Young Justice is his Gambit if the Light goes rogue.
- Can't imagine how a group of cheap copies of the heroes the Light is supposed to take down is going to themselves take down the Light without a whole crapton of Idiot Ball and Deus ex Machina. Hell, Savage on his own could solo most of the team.
- Considering the fact that they had access to a boom tube, this is very possible.
- Agreed. The presence of the boom tube pretty much proves it.
- He finally appears in season 2's final episode as a partner of Vandal Savage.
- This theory has some additional support now that we know that the Sphere comes from New Genesis. This indicates that the Light's extraterrestrial partners might indeed be on New Genesis and not on Apokolips as most viewers originally assumed from the end of "Bereft". And it's not even necessary for New Genesis to be mistaken about the Light's affiliation: the Earth-based Light villains probably aren't very keen on Darkseid enslaving their planet either, so this could easily set up an Enemy Mine situation where YJ and the Light join forces against Apokolips.
- However, its also clear that the Sphere was stolen from New Genesis and the Forever People were trying to get it back. It's perfectly possible, and somewhat more likely, that the thieves were from Apokolips and not New Genesis.
- Simple, there are two conspiracies. Darkseid is backing Intergang while Metron is backing the Light. He's been trying to kindle the Fifth World on Earth for years now.
- Darkseid is confirmed to be helping the Light and Vandal is partners with him.
- If you look at the silhouettes of "The Light" members who were speaking with Black Manta in the last minutes of "Downtime", you can see that the one in the center bares a striking resemblance to Orm's alter ego, "Ocean-Master." The signature three-pointed head-piece pretty much seals the deal.
- This theory has much more ground in it now that Ocean Master is revealed as a member of the Light.
- Confirmed in issue 14 of the tie-in comics. Orm is Ocean-Master.
- Jossed, as he is certainly a Light member.
- Hid I.D. number is L-8, as in L+3+4=L8.
- Despite his failures, he later helps Lex and Queen Bee near the end of season 1, and aligns with the League of Shadows in season 3 when they move to Santa Prisca. He's still not a member though.
It's mentioned in the YMMV page that the toyline replaced Artemis and Miss Martian with Cold and Black Manta (no big loss there). Black Manta has since become a major character. With Barry and...whatever Impulse's name is (I know it but it escapes me just now) themselves being involved in a significant arc, it seems probable that one or more of Flash's most significant villains will also be playing a part.
- Jossed, Captain Cold only returns to provide a conflict for the heroes attending Rocket's shower.
- Ra's ultimately leaves the Light prior to season 2 and 3, but he is not gone from the narrative otherwise.
- Giving Arsenal had robot arm which has proven quite effective against Black Beetle.
- Getting the runaway kids from STAR to go with him (Note that he outright states that Blue Beetle became an agent of the Reach and couldn't be trusted)
My guesses for their replacements would be any of the following: Neron (got most of the Light to sell their souls in exchange for a power upgrade, for him this would be business as usual), The Joker (a possibility, but he's perhaps a bit too Ax-Crazy to really care if Earth becomes a universal superpower), perhaps Deathstroke or Hugo Strange (the former was aiming to join, the latter seems to be one of the few minions that hasn't screwed up in some way), or Black Adam (he's been Big Bad material for many other things, this could perhaps bump him up from They Wasted a Perfectly Good Character. As an alternative, Desaad might have joined, owing to his master backing the Light, meaning he'd basically be Mouth of Sauron.
- Some other ideas would be Black Mask (the kingpin of Gotham City who basically controls the entire underground), General Zod (when he gets his ass out of the Phantom Zone), Doctor Sivana (greatest evil scientist in the world and self-named "Wickedest Man Alive"), and maybe even Brother Blood (cult leader with a lot of followers and perfect Teen Titans add-on to Young Justice)
- It takes season 3 to confirm it, but Deathstroke did indeed replace Ra's on the Light. Rather than DeSaad, Granny Goodness takes another seat, and the last of them is actually Ultra-Humanite. Joker is jossed for ultimately trying to get Lex killed in a flashback to the point Lady Shiva tried to have him killed, Black Adam is off in space according to one of the tie in comics, and on the front of General Zod, he is one of season 4's primary antagonists and tried to outright conquer the planet when he escaped, which Vandal didn't take too kindly to by having him imprisoned.
- The Child finally appeared in season 4, but she got a different familiar, the golem called Flaw, so jossing this idea.
The reason Ocean Master is no longer a part of the Light is because he thought trying to pick a fight with the Universe was a dumb idea, and was happy to just conquer Earth- sensible, considering what happened in Impulse's timeline. However, Ocean Master needed allies to fight his former partners, and so he confided in Black Manta. Manta saw a chance to boost his own status within the Light, and informed on Ocean Master. Ocean Master was forced to flee, and Black Manta took his place.
If Season Three ever aired, would Ocean Master join with the heroes to try and stop the Light from screwing over Earth.
- Jossed, as he was instead defeated at some point prior to season 2. He nearly burned his bridges with the Light by trying to kill the heroes' loved ones in season 3 when they know this will make the heroes more aggressive, requiring Lady Shiva to kill him. This allows Operation Thrinos to be used to give Orm another chance in season 4.
- For the most part, Jossed. While he's not a member, he does have an agreement with them, though both parties in the agreement fully expect it to end in conflict once they've achieved their respective goals.